Someone suggested them again this weekend as a way to mark the spots where cyclists have died on the roads. The thinking seems to be that these eerie memorials will raise the awareness of those who pass by and maybe prompt them to drive more carefully.

For the record: I understand the impulse and the sentiment, but if I should fall victim to a careless motorist I do not want a ghost bike.

I don’t want people to be afraid to ride their bicycles. I don’t want anyone to waste their time putting a ghost bike by the side of the road when it almost certainly will be removed as junk before very long.

What I want instead, and what I suggest that you do for other victims rather than mark the spot with a bicycle painted white:

Call and write to your city council representatives, your law enforcement people, your state legislators and your federal elected officials.

Go to meetings where decisions are made and make your case.

Say out loud what you think and what you want done to make the roads safer.

Hold officials accountable until they make and laws that will make a difference. Those people work for you.

Demand action.

Don’t stop.

Put up ghost bikes for other people if you like, but do these other things, too.

Update 11/5/2010: The driver charged with traffic violations that resulted in the death of Susan DeSotel turned himself in to police last night.

Update 11/4/2010: It says here that the arrest warrant for Robert Fleming was issued today.

Based on comments from a number of Eastern Iowa cyclists in various forums, they are unimpressed with the performance of law enforcement authorities in this case. That is what you might call an understatement.

If the driver is still around somewhere nearby, “we’ll run into him again sooner or later.”

CRPD asked the county attorney to issue a warrant for Fleming’s arrest.

Posted earlier today:

The driver who turned in front of cyclist Susan DeSotel, resulting in the collision that took her life, has been charged with “improper turn and no insurance.”

That information came in an email from Cedar Rapids Police Chief Greg Graham to Monica Vernon, a council member who followed up on my request for information. No other details about the charges – when they were filed or what the penalties are, for example – were provided at the time. Look for more details this week.

Improper turn and no insurance.

It says a lot about the limitations of state law in Iowa and, of course, about the driver, Robert H. Fleming.

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]]>https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/25/deadly-driver-charged-with-improper-turn-no-insurance/feed/3bjsmithFlemingLet officials know you want action when cyclists are injured or killedhttps://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/23/let-city-officials-know-you-want-action-when-cyclists-are-injured-or-killed/
https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/23/let-city-officials-know-you-want-action-when-cyclists-are-injured-or-killed/#commentsSat, 23 Oct 2010 13:00:17 +0000http://bjsmith.wordpress.com/?p=4439]]>Some phone numbers you might consider calling to ask what is being done in the wake of Susan DeSotel’s death (see previous post):

Cedar Rapids Police Department: (319) 286-5491

Mayor Ron Corbett, City Hall: (319) 286-5051

Mayor Ron Corbett, Home: (319) 365-8187

Those numbers are all from the city’s website. You can find your council representatives there, too.

Let the police and the mayor and the others know you care about this.

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]]>https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/23/let-city-officials-know-you-want-action-when-cyclists-are-injured-or-killed/feed/1bjsmithEnhanced by ZemantaWant to be bike-friendly? Take cyclist deaths seriouslyhttps://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/want-to-be-bike-friendly-take-cyclist-deaths-seriously/
https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/want-to-be-bike-friendly-take-cyclist-deaths-seriously/#commentsThu, 21 Oct 2010 16:06:28 +0000http://bjsmith.wordpress.com/?p=4433]]>Cedar Rapids, Iowa – This town has made some progress in recent years toward becoming a more “friendly” place to move around by bicycle rather than car or truck.

There are a few bike lanes. There is a city Bicycle Advisory Committee. There are Bicycle Ambassadors, and now and then people make an effort to accommodate and encourage the bicycling public by providing special parking areas, generally staffed by a few volunteers and city employees.

Although most people didn’t know it, largely because of a lack of timely promotion by city officials and lack of interest from the local media, there was even a Bicycle Safety and Driver Alertness Month back in September.

All well and good.

How “bike friendly” is it, though, when a local cyclist can be killed in a collision with a motor vehicle and it takes months (nearly three in this case so far) to decide about charging the driver?

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]]>https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/want-to-be-bike-friendly-take-cyclist-deaths-seriously/feed/3bjsmithEnhanced by ZemantaWhy is there water?https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/15/why-is-there-water/
https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/15/why-is-there-water/#commentsFri, 15 Oct 2010 13:02:01 +0000http://bjsmith.wordpress.com/?p=4360]]>Just as air is for filling up volleyballs and basketballs and footballs*, not to mention bicycle tires and soccer balls, water for many of us is something that keeps a canoe or a kayak or a bass boat afloat.

Water is for washing cars, keeping the lawn green, swimming around in and splashing on others. We drink it and use it to brush our teeth and wash our clothes and do so many other mundane things.

In much of the United States and, I suppose, much of the rest of the world, we have trouble even imagining life without clean, fresh water.

“Almost a billion people on the planet don’t have access to clean drinking water. Unsafe water and a lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of all disease and kill more people than all forms of violence, including war.”

You will learn what you can do to help, and how far even a modest cash donation will go.

I know that because I’m one of the book’s many co-authors. I slipped in there among some pretty deep thinkers and innovative marketing types. Consider it a must-read, and help bring clean drinking water to people who really, really need it.

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]]>https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/10/protecting-brains-is-what-counts-not-statistics/feed/3bjsmithNew bicycle helmetsEnhanced by ZemantaJogger dies after collision with bicycle riderhttps://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/04/jogger-dies-after-collision-with-bicycle-rider/
https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/04/jogger-dies-after-collision-with-bicycle-rider/#commentsMon, 04 Oct 2010 18:50:50 +0000http://bjsmith.wordpress.com/?p=4368]]>On dallasnews.com this morning is a story reporting the death of the jogger who was injured in a collision with someone on a bicycle the other day.

It is a sad, sad reminder to all of us.

Be aware of your surroundings. Among other things, that means being able to hear other traffic on the trail or on the road, whether you’re running, walking, skating, bicycling or driving a car or truck.

Cyclists have as much responsibility to maintain control as anyone else. Pass as safely on a trail as you want motorists to pass you on the road. Slow down if that’s what it takes to avoid hurting somebody.

You can avoid collisions.

]]>https://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/04/jogger-dies-after-collision-with-bicycle-rider/feed/1bjsmithEnhanced by ZemantaWarning: Knuckleheads on bicycles, others on foothttps://bjsmith.wordpress.com/2010/10/02/warning-knuckleheads-on-bicycles-others-on-foot/
Sat, 02 Oct 2010 14:49:39 +0000http://bjsmith.wordpress.com/?p=4361]]>You may recall reading here that it’s best to assume all drivers are drunk and stupid when you’re out on a bicycle.

When you’re running, assume that someone fully capable of ruining your day (or worse) is closing in on you – a knucklehead on a bicycle, for example. Some will warn you, and you might hear them, and some won’t.

When you’re riding a bicycle and about to pass someone else, assume that person is not paying attention and is very likely to walk, run or pedal right in front of you at the worst possible moment.